“The cases of Vanessa Perroncel and John Terry – a curious legal affair” – Dominic Crossley

As Roy Greenslade’s recent blog highlighted, last Sunday 3 October the News of the World published the following with regard to Vanessa  Perroncel (together with a photograph of her looking wonderfully defiant):

“On January 31 and afterwards we published some personal information about Vanessa Perroncel in articles concerning an alleged affair with the footballer John Terry.

Miss Perroncel has since informed us that she would have preferred her personal information to remain private and it was untrue in any case. We apologise to Miss Perroncel for any distress caused”.

Matrix Media Update – 9 October 2010

This is a Media Law Update covering the fortnight prepared by the Legal Information Team at Matrix Chambers, which they have kindly agreed to make available to readers of Inforrm.

Latest Cases

BBC v HarperCollins Publishers Ltd & Ors [2010] EWHC 2424 (Ch) – 4 Oct 2010.  The BBC sought an interim injunction to prevent the publication of an autobiography of The Stig, on the basis that the driver owed it duties not to disclose confidential information – including that he was The Stig. Held: the driver owed an equitable duty of confidentiality, since he understood when he took on the role that the identity of The Stig was confidential to himself and the BBC. However, statements in the press that the named driver was The Stig would have been understood by the public as statements of fact. For all practical purposes, anyone who had an interest in knowing the driver’s identity knew it. By 29 Aug 2010, at the latest, the fact that the driver’s identity was so generally accessible that that information had lost its confidential character. No injunction would be granted.